The invention relates to a joining element for bridging the separating area of a divided seal in a cable fitting.
From the European Patent document 0 443 118 B1, a divided sealing washer made of plastic and being provided for a sealing body in a cable fitting is known. Said divided sealing washer consists of an elastic tube comprising, at the seal ends, a joining element bridging the separating area and being positioned inside the sealing washer. The joining element is formed from two corresponding coupling members engaging with each other and being backwards offset inside the sealing washer. When being joined, the dividing faces of the sealing washer are pressed together; wherein a tight fit of the coupling members inside the sealing washer must be guaranteed for this purpose.
The problem to be solved by the present invention consists in creating a joining element for cut seals which can be inserted in a way which is particularly favourable with regard to mounting.
According to the present invention, the posed problem is solved by means of a joining element of the above explained type and in that the joining element consists of a fixing component comprising two tube elements being positioned on a joining bar in a way to be spaced from each other by a certain distance and of a closing component comprising pins being spaced having the same distance, in that corresponding locking elements on the pins and on the tube elements are positioned for mutual engagement, and in that the distance between the pins and between the tube elements, respectively, corresponds to the distance between two receiving holes in the seal ends of the seal assembled at the separating area.
The advantage of the joining element according to the present invention consists particularly in that no adhesive agent is required for achieving the fixing. The seals used, which mostly consist of elastic plastic material such as silicone, suitable adhesive agents which guarantee sufficient fixing are particularly hard to find. Also, for elastic plastic materials, mechanical clamping is possible only under great difficulties due to the flexibility of the material. In the joining element according to the present invention, the fixing of the seal at a separating area between two ends of the seal is practically independent of the sealing material used, since the seal ends are merely mutually aligned at the separating area and are fixed in their position by means of the joining element. For this purpose, a receiving hole for the insertion of tube elements and pins, correspondingly engaging thereinto, of the joining element is provided in each end of the seal. The tube elements and the pins are located on joining bars, wherein they are spaced by distances which are determined by the positions of the receiving holes, wherein the joining bars bridge the separating area of the seal. When mounting the joining element, the fixing component of the joining element is first inserted into the receiving holes of the seal ends with its tube elements, so that herewith the alignment and the mutual fit of the seal ends is performed. The locking is then performed by engagement of the closing component, wherein the pins of the closing component engage into the tube elements of the fixing component free from backlash. Profile packings or O-ring type seals are used as seals in cable fittings, in particular when a washer seal is used in a sealing region between the sealing bodies and a socket pipe. Said seals can also be provided with a longitudinally extending cavity, so as to increase the elasticity of the seal. The joining element according to the present invention is arranged at the separating area of the seal in a fashion as to be sunk-in in the seal ends, e.g. in a continuous recess of a profile packing or in a recess which is adapted to the shape of the joining element, so that the joining element does not appear as a projection. With particularly critical separating areas, wetting agents or adhesives suitable for sealing and per se known in cable fitting technology can be applied in addition.